The Details Count When Cleaning Your Tools

Properly cleaning tools in the salon is an important part of keeping clients safe, but not everyone learns how to do it. It may surprise you to know that I have a friend who was taught in nail school to pour disinfectant not to the correct measurement, but instead to a specific shade of blue. Another friend was taught by an instructor to pour a disinfectant into a large container of water at an incorrect ratio (not what was listed on the instructions on the jug it came in) “because she said so.”

Add to that salons that are now using sterilizing procedures for tools, which can be done incorrectly as well. The tools don’t go straight into the autoclave from the nail table. Just like they shouldn’t go straight into the disinfectant from being used on the clients’ hands. Debris and oils left on the tools contaminate the disinfectant. It does not matter what color it is or is not, there shouldn’t be anything floating in it.

There are options out there for what you use to clean your tools. One important thing is to use tools that are good enough quality to be able to withstand being cleaned. Make sure you DO NOT leave your tools in the liquid longer than needed if you are disinfecting them. Read the instructions thoroughly on the product you choose to use — don’t assume you know how to use it or that you were told how to use it correctly.

The product I choose to use in the salon is HLD8. It does not have to be mixed so I can pour it straight into my disinfection tray. The tools must be washed with soap and water then dried before being placed in the liquid. They soak for eight minutes then come out and need rinsing, then can air dry or be dried for storage. My liquid stays good to use continually for 21 days. Do you know these things about the product you are using? Tools need to be washed with soap and water – do you need to dry them before putting them in your liquid or your autoclave? What is your soak time?

It is our responsibility to keep our clients safe and one of the ways we do that is by making sure to clean our implements properly. Reading the instructions all the way through for ourselves — not just accepting what someone else said or doing things the way they’ve always been done where you work — is a good way to safeguard them.